Exactly 4 Years Ago: Tsunami Hits Thailand At 10.00 Am

[warmwater7]

Key facts about the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami

The Boxing Day, or Asian tsunami was triggered by an earthquake off the coast of the Island of Sumatra, Indonesia.

The Indian Ocean or the Sumatran-Andaman earthquake, hit just before 1pm NZ time on December 26, 2004.

The magnitude 9.3 quake occurred along the Indian and Eurasian plates and caused a 1,200km section of the earth's crust to surge upward, displacing a large body of water.

In deep water waves travel quickly, but remain low. On reaching shallower water waves move slower but at a greater higher.

The tsunami reached speeds of up to 800km/h and heights of up to 30 metres.

The Nicobar and Andaman Islands were the first coastlines to be hit, less than 10 minutes after the quake. Banda Aceh was hit shortly after.

The tsunami reached Thailand and Sri Lanka after two hours, and Somalia after 7 hours.

The wave spread around the world, with tidal fluctuations being recorded as far away as Iceland and the Eastern United States.

Indonesia suffered the greatest number of casualties, with an estimated loss of nearly 168,000 people, and more that half a million left homeless.

Sri Lanka, India and Thailand also suffered heavy loss of life and destruction.

Casualties occurred in 12 countries and are estimated at around 230,000 with nearly 1.7 million people displaced.

55 countries lost people to the tsunami, many of them tourists. Germany and Sweden suffered the greatest loss of lives among countries not directly hit. 56 New Zealanders died and 276 Australians.

Forensic work was used to attempt to identify many of the victims. DNA testing was also used in authenticating parents claiming lost infants.

The international response to the disaster was unprecedented with over $20m in aid being pledged.

-- Agencies 2008-12-26

i flew out of kata on 23rd to the states. flew out of new orleans same .........3 day before katrina. survived class 5 hurricane ( gilbert) on isla cozumel.

live in the moment.

prayers to end all suffering.

[petercallen]

australia donated $1 billion aud to indonsia but the aussie govt had the say how it was spent

[Jimjim]

NatGeo is re-running their documentary on the tsunami, which covers Thailand and all of the other affected areas. I've seen it many times before although it is no less sobering today.

I had that on tape in Thailand but my ex did something with it. I had two different documentaries that National Geographic did on it. Guess I'll have to buy them on DVD or download someday.

[Slip]

My girlfriend, her brother and I were on Kho Phi Phi. We were really very lucky. Her brother and I were sitting on our balcony. Luckily being cheap charlies our guest house was about 200 m from the beach. We didn't see any wave, just a sudden flooding to the level of about 1.5M. At that point it all seemed very strange and quite funny. My other half wasn't quite so lucky.

She was down at the beach front at the ATM when the wave stuck. She heard people shouting "Run! Run" but thought to herself "sod it! I'm not losing my card" knowing how much hassle they are to replace with the police report and all, and obviously having no idea what was coming. Whilst she was waiting the wave swept in and the plucky little idiot ducked under the water, retrieved her card, and hung on to a lamp-post while the water receded, before making her way back to us. Still none of us had an idea of the severity of the situation.

With regards to the timing; it seems strange to me, as I would have sworn it was some time not too long before 9 am, but we'd been up partying all night so I guess my recollection could be faulty.

We went for a reccy to see what was going on, and that's when we started to realise the extent of the carnage- as we walked from the Muslim village area on the back road to town that passes the water treatment works we saw our first couple of bodies although how they'd got so far inland so quickly I still have no idea.

Somewhat shocked to find bodies lying at the side of the road we continued along until we came into the town at the very quiet end. The scene was absolute devastation. We quickly came across a guy who I reckon was responsible for saving many lives that day. He was marshalling what I would guess was 10-20 volunteers carrying the wounded from the beach across a nearly impossible landscape of rubble, trees, twisted metal and the like, using doors as stretchers. The biggest fear was that another wave would hit, and as we worked a shout would go up that another wave was on its way and everyone scattered to higher ground. We were stretchering people up to an undamaged guest house and at least one poor guy died as we were taking him up the hill. By this stage there were many bodies obvious to be seen all around. At one point I sat on some wreckage on the beach to take a breather and turned round to see some poor soul dead inches away. By this stage I had become strangely numb to the presence of dead bodies although I'd never seen one before in my life.

I saw a lot of horror that day but I saw a lot of good too. People (farang and Thai) were toiling in horrible conditions to help their fellow man. Over the course of the day we moved through the entire town and everywhere were people looking for people. We saw one heavily pregnant Thai woman who had injured her leg and couldn't walk.

Later we came across one of the island policemen and asked him if he could help her- he just shrugged. This is not meant of a criticism of him, but shows what I had still not grasped- that in the short-term there was nothing that could be done.

Eventually just about everyone in the area ended up sleeping on the hill behind the water works. A Thai family that lived up there provided their land, facilities, food and water to what must have been hundreds of people. That night everyone slept under the stars and heard reports that there were other areas of high land with people, which gave some hope to those missing loved ones.

What I remember most is the smell that was around. I have no idea what it was but I never want to experience it again.

To all those who lost loved ones that day, my sincerest condolences, and may those that passed away R.I.P.

[EDIT: Fixed annoying double spacing]

Edited December 27, 2008 by Slip

[anjalirajan]

Tsunami in Thailand

In Thailand, the tsunami hit the Andaman Coast (954 kilometres in length) between 9.40 and 10.30

a.m. local time. The first waves passed almost unnoticed four to ten kilometres offshore. The second

series of waves, however, up to 10 metres high, impacted severely on the six coastal provinces along the

Andaman Sea, namely: Ranong, Phang Nga, Phuket, Krabi, Trang and Satun. The level of devastation

in the six provinces varies significantly depending upon a number of natural parameters including

bathymetry, slope, elevation and presence of natural barriers, as well as man-made factors such as

coastal land-use and development. The most affected province is Phang Nga, in particular Khao Lak

district. Phuket and Krabi provinces were also severely impacted. In Ranong, Trang and Satun provinces,

offshore islands sustained severe damage, but lesser impacts were recorded on the mainland. As of 8

February 2005, the Royal Thai Government casualty estimates were reported at 5,393 dead, 8,457 injured

and 3,062 missing.

Preliminary Findings: Impacts on the Natural Environment

Coral Reefs

The coral reefs along the Andaman coast of Thailand are a natural heritage characterized by a rich

biological diversity. They are estimated to cover 7,861 hectares. The reefs are more developed around

offshore islands while few reefs are located off the mainland. They are the main sources of direct income

for tourism and indirect income for the fisheries sector.

Sea Grass Beds

The sea grass beds along the Andaman coast of Thailand cover an area of 7,937 hectares. Sea grass

habitats are of considerable importance as a basis for fishery production, as a food source for certain

threatened animals, in particular the Green turtle (Chelonia mydasand) and the dugong (Dugong dugon),

as well as for coastal stabilisation. Changes in sea grass area over the last decades have not been assessed,

since the first comprehensive survey has only been completed recently. However, the main threats to

sea grass are known and include pollution and sedimentation from industrial, housing and tourism

developments, effluent from shrimp farms, disturbance from push and trawl net fishing, and siltation

from tin mining.

Mangroves

Mangrove forests help stabilize banks and protect reefs from terrestrial sediments (see text box case

study). They are home to a rich diversity of marine and avian wildlife and provide shelter among their

roots for juvenile reef fish. The mangrove forests along the Andaman coast of Thailand cover an area of

approximately 181,374 hectares. Changes in mangrove forest area cannot be precisely determined due

to differences in the methodologies applied over time. However, the main threats to mangrove forests

are known and include: infrastructure (roads) development, settlements, coastal aquaculture (up to the

late 1990s), and the use of mangrove forest as landfills.

Marine Wildlife

Thailand's Andaman Sea hosts a number of threatened fauna species, including dugong (Dugong dugon),

globally vulnerable, a number of species of dolphins; and four species of sea turtles: Leatherback turtle

(Dermochelys coriacea) – critically endangered; Green turtle (Chelonia mydas) – threatened; Hawksbill

turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) – critically endangered; and, Olive Ridley turtle (Lepidochelys olivacea)

– endangered. The main threats to sea turtles include coastal development, in particular massive tourism

development, and fishing practices, such as entanglement and drowning in long-line fisheries and shrimp

trawling nets. Some 150 dugongs are estimated to live in the Andaman Sea, in scattered groups from

Ranong to Satun, with the biggest population around Trang's Talibong and Muk islands. The incidental

catching of dugongs in nets and the degradation of sea grass meadows are the two main threats to

dugongs.

Soils

In the inundated zone, deposition of salts is expected to have occurred, which in turn might affect the

vegetation cover and the medium to long-term fertility of the soil.

Based on preliminary assessment, the Department of Mineral Resources, MONRE, estimated that 20,300

hectares of land on the mainland were inundated. It is estimated that about 1,505 hectares of agricultural

land have been severely affected.

Land Subsidence

Land subsidence, in particular the formation of sinkholes, is a natural phenomenon known to occur in

Thailand in areas with a limestone substrate. Over time, water dissolves the limestone and forms caves.

The stability of the roof of the caves depends on a number of factors, such as the proximity of a fault or

the hydrostatic pressure of the underground water. Strong vibration, such as earthquakes, can trigger

the collapse of unstable or weakened caves. Sinkholes are usually not frequent. However, between the

earthquake of 26 December 2004 and 24 January 2005, 25 sinkholes have been reported, an

unprecedented frequency; 17 of them were reported in the six tsunami-affected provinces.

Sinkholes have not caused any casualties, but have damaged infrastructure. Two schools had to be

closed. The Department of Mineral Resources of MONRE is currently mapping vulnerable areas.